Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange largely edged up on the morning of Wednesday September 15 after a day of weakness, but those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were weaker because they followed movements in London on Tuesday and reacted to weaker Chinese economic data.China retail sales rose by just 2.5% in August after a 8.5% rise in JulyChinese industrial production climbed 5.3% in...Read More
A Turkish mill has returned to the United States' deep-sea ferrous scrap market to secure material at a $1.50- to $5.00-per-tonne increase compared with the previously reported US sale to the region.An East Coast exporter sold a cargo comprising 23,000 tonnes of an 80:20 mix of No1 and No2 heavy melting scrap at $441.50 per tonne cfr, and 5,000 tonnes of shred and 3,000 tonnes of bonus-g...Read More
An overview of the specialty steel raw materials markets in Europe and their latest price moves.Alex Cook, Janie Davies...Read More
Fastmarkets has corrected the pricing rationale for MB-CO-0005 cobalt standard grade, in-whs Rotterdam, $ per lb, which was published incorrectly on Wednesday September 15 due to reporter errors.The range of offers was entered incorrectly for publication in the rationale as $24.30-24.80 per lb, and has been corrected to $24.60-24.80 per lb.One bid at $24.30 was discarded from the assessment due to...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-dipped galvanized coil declined across Europe in the week to Wednesday September 15 due to weaker demand from the automotive segment, sources told Fastmarkets.The European Union automotive industry is unlikely to use as many coil products as the market expected because car manufacturers are working at reduced rates due to the global shortage of semiconductor chips for onboa...Read More
Domestic prices for heavy plate in Europe declined in the week to Wednesday September 15 due to lower slab costs, sources told Fastmarkets.Sentiment in the market remains negative despite healthy demand."Demand is still good, whereas the sentiment is a bit more negative; everybody expects price reductions and has to state approximately ?,?100 per tonne loss on prices till now," a German distributo...Read More
The price of steel hollow sections in Europe remained flat in the week to Wednesday September 15, with trading activity slowing down ahead of the imminent renewal of quarterly European import quotas, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel sections (medium), domestic, delivered Northern Europe, was ?,?1,400-1,430 ($1,654-1,689) per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged since...Read More
The 300-series stainless steel scrap prices in the United States increased week on week while nickel values have trended closer to the $9-per-lb level."There is a significant nickel shortage all over the world, and at least one producer is sold out for the balance of the year with more shortages on the horizon," one market source said.Scrap dealers and processors have tried to hold their...Read More
Chinese battery materials producer Xiamen Tungsten New Energy Materials (XTC) has struck a deal with CNGR Advanced Materials Co for the supply of cobalt tetroxide and ternary precursor materials, XTC announced on Wedmesday September 15.Under the agreement, which runs from September 14, 2021, to December 31, 2023, CNGR is expected to supply to XTC with 20,000-25,000 tonnes per year of cobalt tetrox...Read More
Turkish steel producers have continued their deep-sea scrap bookings for October shipments at fairly stable prices, market participants told Fastmarkets on Wednesday September 15.A steel mill in the Marmara region booked a United States cargo, comprising 23,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $441.50 per tonne, 5,000 tonnes of shredded and 3,000 tonnes of plate and structural (P&S) at $456.50 per ton...Read More
Producers continued to raise their offer prices for low-carbon ferro-chrome during the week to Tuesday September 14 amid tight supply, high costs and uncertain logistics.Fastmarkets' price assessment for ferro-chrome 0.10% C, average 65-70% Cr, delivered Europe was $2.78-3.10 per lb Cr on Tuesday, an increase of 5 cents, or 1.7%, from $2.73-$3.05 per lb Cr one week earlier."Several of the producer...Read More
China's rebar futures rebounded on Wednesday September 15 after the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released data indicating lower steel output in August, but spot prices continued to drop on weak end-user demand. DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,480-5,520 yuan ($850-857) per tonne, down by 20 yuan per tonneChinese steel output continued to decline on both a yearly and monthly basis in Augu...Read More
Shanghai copper premiums rose in the week to Tuesday September 14 with the market becoming quieter ahead of a national holiday in China, while in the United States copper cathodes continued to trade at multi-year high prices.Chinese electro-refined (ER) cathode import premiums hit peak of $85-95 per tonne before decliningUS market continues to be strongShanghai premiums rise ahead of holidayChina'...Read More
Iron ore prices went down again on Wednesday September 15 with concerns about further steel production restrictions depressing iron ore demand outlook, sources said.Fastmarkets iron ore indices 62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $116.65 per tonne, down $5.02 per tonne62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $117.80 per tonne, down $4.83 per tonne58% Fe fines high-grade premium, cfr Qingdao: $88.53 per tonne...Read More
Negative sentiment is prevailing among European buyers of hot-rolled coil, but mills managed to keep prices fairly stable in Italy and Northern Europe on Wednesday September 15, sources told Fastmarkets.Reduced demand from the automotive sector and cheap import material booked earlier this year that has arrived in the European Union and is awaiting customs clearance have been supporting the bearis...Read More
Following a trade of US-origin premium hard coking coal on Wednesday September 15, Fastmarkets' index for premium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang registered its largest-ever daily increase.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $560 per tonne, up $66.83 per tonneHard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $464.78 per tonne, up $11.91 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $358.67 per...Read More
German steelmakers have settled their monthly steel scrap contracts for September at lower prices, following the trend in international markets and due to the increased availability of some scrap grades in the local market, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday September 15.The fall in prices of new scrap grades, including E8 grade, was less pronounced due to the continued short supply of material...Read More
Russia's Metalloinvest has finished modernization work on one of the blast furnaces (BF) at its Ural Steel asset, enabling it to increase pig iron capacity while at the same time cutting greenhouse gas emissions.Metalloinvest has restarted BF No3 at its Ural Steel asset in at Novotroitsk in the Orenburg region to the south of Moscow, the company said late last week. BF No3's capacity to make pig i...Read More
Spot prices for hot-rolled coil in China's domestic market extended losses on Wednesday September 15, as weak economic data and new outbreaks of Covid-19 in the country weighed on market sentiment.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 5,710-5,780 yuan ($887-898) per tonne, down by 40-60 yuan per tonneChina's National Bureau of Statistics released a swath of data on industrial output, retail sales, fix...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday September 14 that are worth another look....Read More